Arsene Wenger must go as embarrassing Arsenal drop out the Premier League title race

The Arsenal versus Chelsea game was overshadowed by the excellent achievement of the manager in hitting the 1000th league game milestone.

Amazing stuff. But the game wasn’t about Arsene Wenger, it was about Arsenal winning the league, burying Jose Mourinho’s unbeaten home record and our boss actually beating him for once.

Well, the intrigue lasted all of two minutes as once again, Arsenal took a pummeling from a top four team. Our game wasn’t just poor, it was embarrassingly inept.

Our starting 11 lacked any sort of pace and punch, which was always going to lead to problems. That wasn’t helped by the fact we don’t ever seem to have a tactical game plan against the big sides. We lacked fight and bottle and there seemed to be no belief in the side at all.

The game could have been marginally different. I mean, we’d still have been beaten, but had Olivier Giroud not scuffed his chance when put through on goal by Rosicky, we’d have changed the shape of the game. As it happened, he missed, the ball went down the other end and Samuel Eto’o showed what buying in world class talent can do with a stunning finish.

From there it went from nought to farcical in seconds. The midfield couldn’t hold onto the ball, Kieran Gibbs was no where to be seen for the second goal. Then minutes later, he was no where to be seen when the Oxlade-Chamberlain handballed on the line. That didn’t stop him taking a red card for it. Maybe the ref red carded Gibbs for having a stinker? The penalty was converted and we were three down before 20 minutes.

Now, there are many issues at play here, but one of my major problems is firstly why did we play such an open and expansive game away to a very dominant Chelsea side. My second issue, is after going one down, why did we not close up shop? We made exactly the same error at Liverpool and suffered exactly the same opening twenty minute pummeling.

In conclusion, we’re now properly out of the title race. Wenger isn’t cut out at the highest level any more. Conceding six goals is shambolic and not befitting of a club with our resources. Trouble is, Wenger doesn’t give his players the tools they need to succeed on the pitch. You can’t just play your own game any more, because teams with better players will study what you game is and counter it.

I’m pleased Arsene has managed to hit his 1,000th game, but would I want another 1,000? No way.

We’ve been served up the same Wenger vision for nine years now and it doesn’t work. How many more years to we want to see the same ‘par the course’ project? How many more cracks at the whip does he get before we say… maybe a change is a good thing? Maybe there’s another visionary manager out there who can come in and do wondrous things for the club?

Maybe, just maybe, it’s telling that Wenger’s second 500 games haven’t delivered anything of note. Visionary ideas have a shelf life, then they need to evolve, otherwise malaise sets in. All the evidence supports a deep stagnation has set in at the club. The only way we break free is a new manager, or some serious introspection at the end of the season.

Arsene has a contract on the table, there’s a growing number of people who hope he doesn’t sign it. I’m one of those. He’s not good enough to take us to the next level and he demonstrated that today with the embarrassing performance at The Bridge that killed our title dreams.